The top
U.S. general for
Iraq on Monday said the country's national election was a milestone on the way to a full withdrawal of American combat troops by September 1 as planned. According to the AP, Gen. Ray Odierno said in Baghdad that most of the 96,000 soldiers currently in Iraq will remain there through May, when the military will start scaling down to 50,000 noncombat troops by the Obama administration's deadline at the start of September
.
"
Unless there's a catastrophic event, we don't see that changing," Odierno said. "We believe we're right on track for that
."
According to Odierno, as of now, every sign points to
Iraq being able to peacefully form a new government in coming months
.
